Cold Dark Sea
by Alyssa.Holt
Summary: Charlotte and Melanie are forced to leave their safety and they decide to go to Atlanta to find a new home. They meet new people along the way both friends and enemies. Charlotte finds herself feeling guilty for her every mistake she makes while she tries to adapt to a new world with the weight of her past and Melanie is left stunned by her losses. Daryl/OC Glenn/OC
1. Chapter One: A Journey

**Chapter One: A Journey**

Charlotte focused her bow on the walker in front of her, letting out a breath she let the arrow go. The arrow pierced the walkers skull seconds before it bit into Melanie. Running over she pulled the arrow out before looking over to her friend.

"You good?" she asked pulling the bow onto her shoulder. Her friend nodded, brushing her clothes off taking a deep breath. "I'm gonna check the perimeter, make sure there aren't to many walkers around."

"Alright, I'll be in the house." she replied with a nod. "Be careful Charlie."

"I always am." she said with a smirk before disappearing into the woods around the house. She didn't really need to check the perimeter, the house was boarded up enough that the walkers wouldn't get in easily she just needed to clear her mind. Nearly three weeks ago Melanie's husband, Foster left to find somewhere safer. While the house was moderately safe the city that was about a mile away was overflowing with walkers, it wouldn't take much for a herd to hear something and come running for the house. Something she had learned the hard way. Guns were useless when you wanted to keep a low profile so that left Charlotte to her bow, not that she disliked her bow. She had been taking archery since she was young, even winning some competitions along the way but shoot moving targets that were trying to kill you was a whole other game, something she was still getting used to. Luckily for her whenever she confronted walkers it caused adrenaline with move through her veins, helping her aim.

A she had a arrow loosely in her bow, ready to shoot if she had to. The only sound she could hear was her quiet footsteps across the leaves of the forest floor. Her father used to drag her out hunting with him at least once a month, she truly hating hunting but that didn't stop her father from making her come along. At least staying quiet while walking was a skill she picked up, she remembered the smacks she used to get whenever she would step on a tree branch. Shaking the memory from her mind she moved back to the matter at hand.

She knew logically that Foster would have been back by now whether he had found a safe place or not, she knew deep down that the cold truth was that Foster wasn't returning home alive. She didn't know how to say that to her friend though. She was pulled out of her thoughts when she felt a hand latch onto her ankle, her heart stopping for a moment she moved back as she saw the walker laying on the ground. It no longer had any legs which explained why it was on the ground. She jumped back just before it's teeth approached her leg. Drawing her bow she released the arrow killing it. With a huff she pulled out leather gloves from her back pocket, dragging the corpse back home.

Once she was back she tossed the body on top of the other ones she and Melaniey had killed earlier. Grabbing some logs from the pile beside the house she made a fire big enough to burn the bodies. After getting the fire steady she tossed the bodies on the fire. The sun began to descend as she sat guard on the porch watching the fire burn. With the sun disappearing she knew there would be a chance of more walkers spotting the fire. She hoped that the bodies would burn quicker.

Charlotte was startled when she heard foot steps behind her but relaxed when she realized it was just Melaniey. She quietly sat next to her on the porch. Charlotte wanted to console her friend and tell her everything would be alright and Foster would be back soon but she knew that they were lies. Even if she got over the death of her own husband, this world was broken. Every day felt like the were living on borrowed time. How could this world be fixed?

The silence wasn't tense between them but it was heavy, both unsure of what to say. In the end the silence won out as the silhouettes of the bodies disappeared into the ashes. Charlotte stood up quickly and grabbed a shovel heading towards the still burning fire. She shoveled dirt onto the flames until their glow disappeared. After she returned to Melanie she stood on the porch.

"Let's get inside, I don't like being outside in the dark with those things." she said before opening the door. Charlotte's head was in a rush as she tried to find the words to bring up the fact that they needed to leave soon. She spent the night in her head not saying a word, through dinner, through cleaning her arrows off, through straightening her stuff up until the two finally laid down in the living room to go to sleep for the night, the dark room surrounding them.

"We need to leave." Charlotte wanted to smack herself in the face, she spent all day trying think of how to bring it up and that was what she came up with.

"Foster should be here soon, we shouldn't leave. It'll just bring confusion." she replied quickly, her voice holding a frantic tone. Charlotte sighed internally, she didn't feel like fighting with her best friend and she certainly didn't want crush her spirits.

"More and more walkers are all around, they are getting closer to the neighborhood. I don't want to be here when they start trying to bust through the doors of all the houses. We can meet up with Foster in Atlanta." she said trying to rationalize but the last part about Foster, she knew was a lie. She just had to get her friend out of a danger zone, even if it meant lying. Silence blanketed the room, she knew that she was thinking about it. That was fine, after more time she wasn't sure whether her friend had fallen asleep or was still thinking to herself. Either way she knew it was time to get some sleep for herself.

Charlotte stretched across her small bed on the floor, letting a small yawn out only to stop short when she heard banging on the side of the house. She froze in her spot, before quickly moving to her feet. She used the small opening on the door only to see walkers all over the yard and on the porch. It looked like a sea, the walking corpses bumping into each other clawing at the house, snarling and groaning. She jumped back, a small gasp escaping her mouth. She moved to her stuff that was in the corner of the living room, she had been sure to keep her bags packed with things that they would need if they had to flee. Grabbing her stuff she moved quickly opening the door to the garage. Opening the gate on the back of the old Jeep Wagoneer she tossed her bags in. Running back inside she ran over to Melaniey.

"Wake up!" she shouted. "We're surrounded." she said quickly before moving to the kitchen. She grabbed canvas totes out of the cupboards and found food in the pantry that would be good for a long journey. "Grab the bags in the kitchen and put them in the car!" she shouted to her. "Pack a few outfits too."

Charlotte ran up stairs in to Foster's office with a canvas bag in hand, thankfully he had been a collector of guns and quite the avid hunter. She grabbed guns that would be useful like shotguns, handguns and rifles leaving the old collector guns behind. Opening a drawer she found boxes of ammo, grabbing handfuls until the drawers were empty she filled the bag. Running back to the car she tossed the bag in the front seat. In the garage there were cases of water, once again thanks to Foster he was mildly paranoid of disasters so he always kept water stocked along with cans of gasoline. Loading the car she ran back into the house once she was finished. Her eyes scanned the room seeing if there was anything else they needed to take.

She spotted Melanie folding up the blankets, Charlotte moved to the kitchen where her keys sat. "Let's get out of here." she said passing Melanie.

"What if Foster comes back while were gone?" she asked. Charlotte once again sighed internally.

"Leave him a note, tell him were heading to Atlanta." she said quickly, moving the the car. She grabbed a shotgun out of the back of the jeep, loading it. She would have to pull up the door manually and get back in the car. Heading back inside with the shotgun resting on her shoulder she found Melanie scribbling out a note. Once she finished Charlotte told her to get in the car. She moved to where her bed once was, grabbing her bow that laid on the ground next to it's quiver. Her eyes moved to the note, she knew Foster was never going to read it and she also knew that if strangers where to stumble upon it they would know where they were going. She quickly grabbed the note and folded it up in her pocket. Heading to the garage she opened the driver seat door.

"I'm going to open the door now, if I don't make it back inside go without me." she said with a grave tone. She could tell by the expression on her face that she wouldn't want to do that and a part of Charlotte knew despite her command she wouldn't. Charlotte left her bow on the middle seat in the front row. Moving to the garage door she looked back to Melanie with a nod before throwing the heavy metal door up. The walkers were quick to attack, they began to flood the garage, Charlotte using the shotgun to slow them. Once she got them far enough away she ran to the car hopping in, tossing the empty shotgun in the back seat. She quickly pressed the gas pedal and drove onto the street trying to ignore the sight and sound of driving over the walkers. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw that the trees that surrounded the house were on fire, luckily the wind was blowing away from the house or they would have burnt alive or made it out with no supplies. She felt a guilt settle on her chest, she hadn't put out the fire fully. They had made it out alive and the gave her some relief. She knew leaving the house would be hard but there was no avoiding it. They would now have to find different places to sleep every night and have to survive the harsh life that traveling in this world brought.

They had been driving for about a hour when she saw Melanie getting antsy. Glancing over at her a few times she finally spoke. "Do you have to go to the bathroom?" she asked keeping her eyes glued to the road. There wasn't any other cars driving but she didn't want to risk hitting a animal or a walker or the cars that were stranded along side the roads.

"I don't want to slow us down." she said quietly.

"It'll only stop us for a couple minuets." Charlotte replied. She eyed the side of the road it was mostly scare trees but it would be enough cover. She pulled over hopping out with the bow in her hands. Melanie got out grabbing a roll of toilet paper out of the back. "Let me check the woods real quick." Charlotte said before trotting in front of Melanie. Her bow was drawn in front of her, prepared to shoot if needed. After checking a good perimeter she returned to Melanie with a nod. While Melanie walked out into the woods Charlotte hopped on top of the jeep climbing from the hood to the roof, standing bow in hand keeping look out on the road. In the distance she thought she saw a figure but brushed it off as the sun being in her eyes but after a few moments she saw another figure and another. A shiver of fear coursed through her as she realized a big heard was coming there way.

"Melanie!" she shrieked jumping of the roof of the car running towards the forest. "Melanie, hurry!" her yelling was desperate. When she heard a scream in reply she pulled her bow in position to shoot. When she finally saw Melanie there was two walkers on top of her. "Mel!" she screamed out of fear she pulled her bow back releasing a arrow into one of them but as she reached to the quiver on her hip but her hand fumbled and she couldn't grab another arrow. She watched in fear as the walker's mouth got close to Melanie's arm but before it could bite she pulled the hunting knife off of her side driving it into the walker's skull. She quickly pushed the bodies off her, Charlotte running over to help her up. "There's a heard coming towards the car, we have to turn around." she said quickly before reaching to pull her . Once they reached it there was already some approaching the car. She fired a few arrows only killing ones that would pose a threat, she was able to grab some of the arrows out of the walkers before sliding across the hood of her jeep and climbing into the driver's seat.

She started the ignition quickly before pulling a U turn. "In the glove box there should be a map, I think we passed a highway that can still get us to Atlanta." she said rushed. The speedometer read ninety as her eyes cautiously scanned the roadways.

"It's a couple miles back back, we should hit it pretty soon. It'll take us a hour or so out of our way but we'll get there." Melanie explained. Charlotte nodded asking her to tell her when to turn. The girl drove along the forest highway, green trees and bushes lining the highway. There were a lot less walkers along the highway than the other one they had been on earlier. Perhaps the longer way would be one with less stress. She hoped deeply that would be. As she drove in silence with her friend she found her mind wandering. They wouldn't find Foster, what if the city was over run? They could collect ammo and food and scavenge but it would run out one day. Not to mention it was just the two of them. They couldn't last more than a year by themselves against walkers that wasn't even counting other humans they could run into. People would assume that they were weak and they could take advantage of them, they weren't weak but if a group of ten, twelve even more they wouldn't stand a chance. They needed a group but that was another tricky situation, she was untrusting of others, even more so now. She also doubted groups would be open to accepting more people too. She gave a glance to Melanie, she looked innocent and she was in this world, if she were alone she would easily be accepted into a kind group. Charlotte looked in the side view mirror, she didn't look like a hardened criminal, she was pretty young and it still showed but her eyes looked tired and weighted. She had been through a lot in her short life even before the walkers and it was starting to show. She felt a pressure in her chest, her eyes beginning to burn as memories flooded her mind she quickly blocked them out directing her thoughts back to the road.

She had to stay strong, she didn't know how they were going to survive but they would.

The sun was above them when the reached Alexander City, she slowed her driving, peering out the wind shield taking the city in. It was desolate a few walkers stumbled around, they quickly spotted the car hissing and growling. Charlotte pressed on the gas pedal, speeding out of the city not wanting to take any chances. After about a hour they had reached rural highway again. It would be a few hours to sundown and she wanted to have a safe shelter for the night. Driving in the dark was the last thing she wanted to do. If they wanted to clear out shelter and eat before it was pitch black out they would need to stop soon. She could feel the weight of the day on her, falling asleep early sounded like a good thing right about now. That meant they could get moving once the sun was up tomorrow. After about twenty minuets of driving Melanie spoke up.

"There's a bridge coming up." she mentioned her eyes gazing across the map. "We could park under the bridge and sleep in the car. No one would see us and if any walkers tried to get in the car they wouldn't be. I can do a night watch too, I can sleep while your driving."

"That's a good idea." Charlotte said nodding. She pulled off the pavement road and drove under the bridge. Hopping out she pulled one of the gas cans out and unscrewed the cover on the tank of her jeep. After filling it up she and Melanie set up a small camp. Collecting some small sticks they made a fire to heat up some of the canned food. Luckily for them they didn't eat much, all the gore they saw taking care of the walkers was enough to stop them from eating most of the time. After taking some time to relax the sun was nearly down. Melanie grabbed a handgun out of one of their bags loading it and setting it on the dash. Charlotte made a small bed out of blankets across the back row. They both sat quietly in the jeep, Melanie perched in the front seat of the car the hand gun near by, Charlotte laid in her bed wishing she could think of something to say. Words used to come so easily for her around Melanie before but ever since Foster left it was tense. Melanie wasn't mad but Charlotte felt guilty, she felt like she should have been the one to find a safer place, maybe she would have made it back. Her logical side chided her, Foster had been in the army, if he couldn't make it she surely wouldn't have. She soon found herself drifting away in sleep, regret in the back of her mind that she couldn't think of anything comforting to say to her friend.

It was dark, but she could recognize the house that she grew up in. The dark alone got her heart racing as she heard floor boards creek. "Hello?" her voice was quiet and child like. "Pete?" she called for her brother quietly. When she saw a large figure loom over her she knew her brother wasn't anywhere to be found. "Good your back." his voice was aggressive and slurred. "Come to leech of us more?!" he yelled backing her into a wall.

"No, no. I don't kno-" she was cut short by a slap to the face, her palm moved to her cheek. She hadn't felt that in a long time. Her eyes welled up and she felt defenseless.

"Oh great, the little life ruiner is back." she heard her mother's bitter voice in the background. Charlotte slumped against the wall, pulling her shoulders in as she slid to the floor. Her mother and fathers voices continued on calling her viscous names. She moved her hands to cover her ears and closed her eyes, rocking slightly trying to block out there hurtful words. When the noise stopped she opened her eyes only to see that her parents were on the ground, a silhouette stood in front of her.

"Pete?" her voice called again for her brother but when a beam of moon light caught his face she knew Pete was no longer there. He growled before moving forward, Charlotte tried to stand up but he grabbed on to her, his teeth moving to her throat. She let out a scream before everything stopped.

She woke up in a cold sweat, quietly panting. She glanced over to see if Melanie noticed but she was focused on the pink sky. She sighed relieved before sitting up.

"Want to head out?" Charlotte asked, Melanie gasped surprised by her voice before nodding. Charlotte folded up the blankets leaving a thing one along with a pillow out for Melanie. She hopped into the drivers seat and started it up heading back on the road. They would be in Atlanta soon and grave thoughts filled her mind as they drove along the desolate highway.


	2. Chapter 2: Goodbye is Forever

** Previously: **Charlotte and Melanie are pushed out of there safe haven and forced to go looking for Melanie's husband, Foster in Atlanta. Charlotte assumes the worse,that Foster is dead. As they approach the state line to Georgia, Charlotte can't help but feel as if she should have been the one to leave to find a safer place.

_Of all the money that e'er I had_  
_I spent it in good company_  
_And all the harm I've ever done _  
_Alas it was to none but me _  
_And all I've done for want of wit _  
_To mem'ry now I can't recall _  
_So fill to me the parting glass_  
_Good night and joy be to you all_

**The Parting Glass**

The Alabama heat was not failing anyone today, one of the things Charlotte would say that she shamelessly missed was air conditioning. Her mind wandered to the feeling you got when you stepped inside a cold home after being out in the heat all day. She relished the feeling of her hand hanging out the window. She wished she could be driving in a convertible on a road trip with her friend, wind blowing in her hair feeling careless but as she caught sight of more walkers wandering through empty fields she knew that simple day dream would be impossible. She looked over to her sleeping friend, she had the pillow against the window, the small blanket covered her and was clutched in her hand. She noticed they her eyes would move under he lids every once and a while. She hoped that her dreams were pleasant, more pleasant than the world around them. Glancing at the map spread out on the middle seat next to her she made sure they were going the right way. She spotted they were just outside of LaGrange, she had to go to the bathroom and the lack of walkers she had seen and the abundance of tree cover was enough for to feel safe pulling over.

She spotted a sort of mini mart along side the road, the building would be good cover and she could loot the store before leaving. She gently nudged Melanie awake. "I'm going to the bathroom behind the store. After I'm gonna check it out and see if there's anything good to take. I'll be quick." she said before hopping out, her bow resting on her shoulder. She was quick to return to the car after she had gone to the bathroom only to find the jeep empty. Her heart started pounding in her chest as she rushed into the store, she pulled her bow off her shoulder and into a defensive position ready to kill any walkers that got in her way. Once she reached in back of the store she was taken aback by the sight. She had expected her friend to be browsing the shelves or at the worse being a snack for a stray walker but somehow her worse wasn't bad enough. Melanie sat there on the floor cradling her husbands corpse. Charlotte lowered her bow, tears stinging her eyes as she watched her friend silently cry. Her mind raced trying to think of how to comfort her friend but she was distracted when she noticed the bite on the back of his neck. She quickly noticed that his skin was pale, even more pale then she expected a normal corpse to be, he heart nearly stopped when she saw that his chest began to rise. She froze, she couldn't kill him while he was in her friends arms, but she couldn't let her friend die because she was sparing her feelings. She was torn as she watched. Melanie caught onto what was happening to her husband, she moved back slightly, her eyes looking even more glassy if that was possible. Charlotte heard her friend mutter something under her breath. Foster began to moved slowly, his eyes opening to reveal a dead grey color nothing like his previous blue eyes.

The familiar hissing noise escaped his mouth, his hands moving to Melanie's shoulders. That triggered something in Charlotte. She raised her bow with lightning speed aiming the arrow at his temple.

"Don't." Melanie's voiced sounded. Charlotte was surprised to hear her use such a dark tone, Charlotte lowered her bow hesitantly.

"He'll kill you!" Charlotte growled back. "I won't loose you to a walker. It isn't Foster anymore!" she yelled. She hadn't raised her voice this much in a long time, she had never even used this tone towards her friend. Her words fell on deaf ears as she moved her hand to stroke her husbands cheek, tears flowing soundlessly down her cheek.

"If I can't kill him you do it!" Charlotte yelled, she had seen the gun in her friends waistband. "Kill him!" she shouted her tone still aggressive. Her heart pounded wildly as she watched Foster begin to move his mouth towards her friends shoulder. "Kill him! Do it now!" her words had no effect on her friend. "Now! Do it now!" she screamed, her tone was getting desperate as her eyes began to burn. She couldn't do it without he friend, she needed her support, things were tense now but Melanie had been the one to help her get out of her troubled family. "Kill him!" she screamed, her lungs feeling like the would give out. She raised her bow again. "I won't loose you like this!" a small tear escaped her eye. "Not like this." her voice was quiet now.

Melanie continued to ignore her as she pressed her forehead against his. "I-I love you, I love you more than you'll ever know." her voice was soft and loving. "Goodbye. Forever."

Charlotte's aim was focused, she pulled her arm back ready to release the arrow but when a gun shot went off she faltered.

Melanie was now sobbing over her husband, blood splattered across the cheap tile floor of the mini mart. Charlotte took a large breath, relief flooding through her. After that weight left another one settled down. Her friend would hate her now, Charlotte was going to kill him and Melanie knew that. She rested her bow back on her shoulder, she walked away as Melanie sobbed over her lost husband, she stopped still in hearing distance.

"Sorry Mel." she said quietly, pain in her words. She didn't regret her actions, she just wished she never had been in that position. She moved to the other side of the store stumbling on hardware, she spotted a shovel and grabbed it. She could hear Melanie's sobs even on the other side of the store. She quickly walked outside, the sound of her friend's cries making guilt stir up in her making her want to barf.

She found a place between two young weeping willows, it looked so beautiful and for some reason familiar, she felt a pain in her chest as remembered why the sight looked familiar. Melanie and Foster had gotten married under a arch in between two large willows. Blocking out the memory she picked up the shovel driving it into the ground, scooping the dirt into a pile next to the grave. She felt sweat gather on her skin wiping it away as she dug further into the ground, the humidity worsening. Once she the grave was up to her knees she knew it was deep enough. She dragged herself out, walking to the jeep. She grabbed one of the large navy blue blankets, she knew that the blanket had been a gift from Melanie to Foster. It was sort of a joke, the couple had joked around about what would make a bad gift when people were first dating on one of there early dates. Foster had mentioned a blanket would make a poor gift so naturally Melanie got the blanket as a joke but they had kept the blanket all a long.

She took a large breath as she stepped back into the mart. Walking slowly she stopped a few feet away from her friend who was now silently cuddling his body to her.

"We should get going, it'll be dark in a few hours." she once again wanted to slap herself with her lack of tact. Melanie stepped away from the body without a word. Charlotte tossed the blanket across his body, wrapping him up in it. Charlotte wasn't very strong but she assumed it was the adrenaline left in her veins and the fact she didn't want to ask her friend to help carry her husbands body. She grabbed his body walking outside to where the grave was. She tried her best to gently place him in the grave. She stood up, watching Melanie as she stared at his covered body with empty eyes from the foot of the grave. Charlotte waited to see if she wanted to say anything but she wordlessly moved to the side of the grave pulling the blanket back taking his hand. She pulled her wedding ring off placing it in his hand before covering his hand with hers. After a few minuets she let go covering him back up. Melanie looked up at Charlotte nodding.

Melanie watched as Charlotte covered the grave with dirt, smoothing it out evenly before finding stones to place around it with the help of Melanie. After standing there for a while, they felt small drops of rain touch their skin. Charlotte looked up as the rain began to pick up, the trees outlined the gloomy sky as the rain ran down her face. In a way it felt relieving, not only because the heat was now gone but something inside Charlotte felt different. Maybe they would get passed this painful day. Maybe one day they would be as playful as they once were. That wouldn't be today or tomorrow. Maybe it would take months but she knew no matter what she had Melanie's back whether she wanted her there or not.

They sat in the jeep silently as the drove down the highway rain beating on the winsheild. Charlotte was on edge, the sky was nearly pitch black and she could only see what her headlights illuminated. She could see in the distance a small farm house in the last glows of the sunlight that peeked through the rain clouds. She pulled off on the dirt road heading to the house. "I'll clear the house." Charlotte said to Melanie as she pulled to a stop. She grabbed her bow getting a good grip as she got out and headed to the door. She quickly opened the door, her bow raised in front of her. Her eyes scanned the house quickly, it was a one room farm house but that wasn't what surprised her. It had already been cleared out, and the person who had done that was leaning against the wall, illuminated by a small gaslight. He wore a sheriff's outfit and had a shiny gun raised to her.

The silence was tense as they stared at each other through the sights of there weapons. "You're just a kid." the man finally spoke, lowering his gun. Charlotte didn't move to do anything waiting to hear more from the man. "I'm not gonna hurt you if you don't hurt me." Charlotte lowered her bow.

"We're just looking for a place to stay the night." she said. She had a odd feeling around this man, whenever she met someone she could read them and her instincts would let her know if they were trustworthy or not, she was nearly always right and she felt comfortable around this man and it surprised her.

"You're welcome to stay here." he said warmly. "What's you name?" he asked.

"Charlotte, Charlotte Hadley. Yours?" she answered.

"Rick Grimes." he introduced himself. "It's a pleasure to met someone with a pulse."

"Same here. I've got a friend in the car, mind if I get her and grab some of our stuff?" she asked.

"Not at all." he said. She could tell even though he was being welcoming he was still on edge, she didn't blame him mainly because despite the good vibes she got from him she was still on guard. Charlotte moved to the car opening Melanie's door. "There's someone in there but they're fine with us staying. His name's Rick." she explained before grabbing stuff some food from the backseat along with blankets. Before she returned inside she grabbed a handgun and put it in the waistband of her jeans covering it with her shirt. She shoved the rest of the guns under the front seat before locking the jeep. She entered back in the house with Melanie.

"This is my friend Melanie." she said setting the blankets down in a opposite corner of where he was set up. Once she set up and started to eat they started chatting, Melanie still silent.

"So where are you guys headed?" he asked. Charlotte looked at him hesitantly, if he she decided he posed a threat she could kill him before he could do anything or get away. She figured it wouldn't hurt to talk to him openly.

"I suppose Atlanta." she said, they needed safety and she hoped they could find it in Atlanta.

"Same here, I'm lookin for my wife and son. You guys looking for anyone?" he asked. Charlotte could feel Melanie tense up next to her.

"We were." she said gravely. "Now we are just looking for somewhere safe."

They spoke a lot that night, Rick explained what had happened to him and the people he had met. When he said his goodnight Charlotte laid down but didn't sleep that night. She kept the handgun tightly in her grip under her covers ready to defend herself and Melanie if needed. Her mind wandered a lot in the night. She was hit by a sudden thought at some point, in her back pocket she still had Melanie's note to Foster. She wondered if her friend would be angry she took it, she wondered if she would want to read it. Suddenly a pocket she thought was empty was feeling like it was burning a hole in her jeans.


End file.
